Sensex, Nifty open flat as Ukraine worries linger

The Sensex and the Nifty opened the day marginally higher, even as tensions in Ukraine continued to linger. The Sensex was trading marginally higher by 39 points, while the Nifty opened 7 points higher in trade. Among the early gainers were metal names like Hindalco, Sesa Sterlite and NMDC.

Maruti Suzuki fell after FII holding in the company reached the mandatory limit. The stock declined 1.84 per cent in trade. Hero Motor Corp was trading lower after the company's motor cycle sales gained only marginally for the month of Feb. Bajaj Auto on the other hand had an even sharper fall after its Motorcycle sales declined 6 per cent. The stock was down almost 2 per cent in trade.

Banking stocks were leading the list of gainers after Monday's sharp fall with notable winners being ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Bank of India and Yes Bank.

Shares in HCL Tech, which had fallen sharply on Monday was trading marginally higher. Other software stocks including Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys and Wipro were among the gainers.

State Bank of India gained ground after reports that the company was planning to bring down non performing assets. Meanwhile, markets across Asia were trading with marginal gains despite worries over Ukraine. The Straits Times, the Japanese Nikkei and the Hang Sang were all trading with gains. However, the Shanghai Composite was trading with a cut of almost 1 per cent.